Dancing to the tunes of J Street

Dubai eye
Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it whether it exists or not, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedy. It’s as if Ernest Benn had George W Bush in mind when he defined the science of power.
Throughout his two eventful terms in office, the former US president went out of his way to look for trouble, found it whether it existed or not, misdiagnosed it and promptly applied the wrong remedy.
We have been here before ad nauseam but it bears noting that much of the bloody mess across the Middle East seen today is a legacy of the man who apparently believed that he had been on a divine mission to ‘reform the natives’, as it were, and promote ‘human freedom and dignity’ by invading Afghanistan and Iraq, and nearly wiping out an entire civilisation.
Driven by the missionary zeal of the Neocons and Zionists, Bush’s America ran like a drunken bull in a china shop, wrecking the complex, ancient mosaic of the region and fracturing it along sectarian and tribal fault-lines. Out of this chaos and bedlam was born many a monster like Isis, not to mention more than a million lives that were squandered in Iraq alone.
You would think that those responsible for those brazen lies, illegal wars and unforgivable crimes against humanity would at least be ashamed of their shenanigans, if not openly admit their guilt. Truth be told, they belong in an international court. But who would even think of confronting the high and mighty from the land of the free. According to American exceptionalism, even ordinary Americans are somehow more equal than others.
Not only do the Neocons and the Republican Right remain utterly unapologetic and blasé about the legacy of the catastrophic wars and all-round destruction unleashed during the disastrous decade of the W presidency, a third member of the dynasty, Jeb Bush, is now being pitched for the White House. And the truly loyal brother that he is, Bush II managed to spare some time from his busy schedule of dog walking, fishing and bird hunting – or whatever the Bushes do after hanging their boots – to bat for Bush III.
And incredible as it may seem, W still appears hung up on the idea that the invasion of Iraq and removal of Saddam Hussain in the name of excavating the Weapons of Mass Destruction that never existed, unleashing chaos across the region, was the right thing to do. Indeed, speaking at the Republican Jewish Coalition event hosted by the Jewish casino billionaire Sheldon Adelson, the former president slammed his successor for pulling the US troops out of Iraq “too early” and apparently paving the way for the rise of Isis. Accusing Obama of putting the US in “retreat” around the globe, Bush was predictably also critical of the nuclear talks and the much hyped deal with Iran.
The Bush jibe drew strong response from the Obama administration with the White House spokesperson rightly pointing out that both Al-Qaeda and Isis did not exist in Iraq before the US invasion. White House spokesperson Josh Earnest also chided Bush by suggesting that Obama had been elected largely as a result of the American public rebuking the Bush administration’s foreign policy decisions: “The fact that President Bush has a different perspective and a different philosophy when it comes to foreign policy, isn’t just a well-known difference; it’s the principal reason that President Obama is sitting in the Oval Office right now.”
That Bush was speaking at an event hosted by the casino billionaire, who has regularly financed and hosted Republican and Democratic politicians, arranged their junkets to Israel and is known for his fierce loyalty to the Zionist cause, may somewhat explain the barbs against Obama. It’s hardly a secret that the incumbent is increasingly loathed and targeted by the powerful Israeli lobby even as it is shamelessly wooed and courted by the lawmakers on both sides of the isle.
Interestingly, the Republican Jewish Coalition event was held in Sin City Las Vegas at the Venetian hotel-casino and home of Adelson. And it was graced not just by the Bushes but by all Republican presidential hopefuls who never tire of flaunting their Judeo-Christian heritage and values and would go to any length to ‘protect Israel’ as if it needs anyone’s protection.
With a fortune of $37 billion amassed from gambling dens in Macau and Vegas, the 81-year-old Adelson is supposed to be the 10th richest man on earth. No wonder, according to the Washington Post, “in Vegas, a crop of White House aspirants sought to outdo each other in opposition” to the Iran nuclear deal. “Ted Cruz declared that he ‘intends to do everything possible to stop a bad Iran deal.’ Indiana Gov. Mike Pence pledged that ‘Israel’s enemies are our enemies. Israel’s cause is our cause.’”
But, as an acerbic former Republican presidential hopeful Patrick Buchanan pointedly asks, “What are candidates who profess Christian values doing in Sin City courting a casino mogul for millions in contributions, when that mogul compiled his immense fortune by exploiting the moral weakness of Christians and non-Christians alike? Does not the Bible condemn gambling?”
But, hey, the politicians also need money to win elections and Adelson and other Jewish moneybags have lots and lots of it. Apparently, Adelson alone contributed $92 million in 2012, to the campaigns of Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney and other Republicans and to prevent the reelection of a certain Barack Hussain Obama. And he is once again poised to spend more to see a more pliable and favorable (to Israel) politician in White House in 2016.
And by the way, he is the same gent who has financed Benjamin Netanyahu’s campaign in the past couple of Israeli elections despite the latter’s not being an American citizen. But then Adelson, married to an Israeli woman, is more than a citizen to the Zionist state. Veteran Israeli peace activist and journalist Uri Avnery calls the Casino King the ‘Real Ruler of Israel’ as he owns Netanyahu himself.
And it is not just Adelson, according to a report in Israeli newspaper Haaretz last week; several other Jewish donors are the biggest financiers of both Republican and Democratic politicians in the upcoming US elections. (See ‘Who are the 2016 Republican presidential candidates’ Jewish donors?’http: //www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/jewish-world-features/1.652798)
Haaretz clearly identifies the key Jewish donors and their favoured candidates in the upcoming race by name. Is it any surprise then potential candidates from both sides of the political divide are falling over themselves to reaffirm their fealty to Israel and Israeli interests all over again?
And then Arabs and Muslims cry about the bias of the US political establishment and media for Israel and indifference and downright hostility to their own interests and concerns. Well, you know what they say, money talks. And the Jewish money has been talking loud and clear in successive US elections with stunning results.
While the Arab and Muslim world is forced to spend its resources and energy in firefighting and chasing mirages in sand, our friends on the other side have for years been investing their hard-earned dollars in making friends and influencing powerful people in high places. And it goes without saying they deliver when the time comes to extract that pound of flesh. Is it not about time the Arabs and Muslims picked a lesson or two from their distant cousins in this respect?
I am not suggesting bankrolling US politicians as the Israeli lobby has been doing for years but it wouldn’t hurt to cultivate promising politicians and media in the land of the free to protect the region’s long-term interests.
The writer is a Middle East based columnist.
Email: aijaz.syed@hotmail.com